


Stage Lights of Regret

by jedjubeed, sanzyfresh



Series: Loss [2]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, and this ends where staging of grief ends, have fuuuuuun, here enjoy all of my disgusting headcanons, it starts where this ends, no its not dadster sorry, staging of grief is sans' backstory, this starts during the war, well where part one ends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-23
Updated: 2016-06-25
Packaged: 2018-07-16 21:10:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7284931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jedjubeed/pseuds/jedjubeed, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanzyfresh/pseuds/sanzyfresh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the very beginning of all Sans will ever be told of The War, The Surface, and of W. D. Gaster.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> I'm looking for a beta reader for this work, other works, my series, or all of everything (I can't control you.) If interested, shoot me a message at jedjubeed.tumblr.com!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my tumblr is jedjubeed.tumblr.com, beta readers is we-can-start-over.tumblr.com (their tumblr is 18+)

The humans had begun to get... Paranoid. Gaster had reason to believe it was a monster's ability to absorb a human soul, but monsters saw it disrespectful to handle a soul after death. 

Either way, they were becoming very defensive against monsters; the human king had even started to draw threats against Asgore.  As the king's right hand man, it really was terrifying. Gaster knew the threats weren't empty, and he feared war. He knew Asgore and Gerson also feared it, but the three were to stay quiet on the matter. After all, they ran the government representing the Monsters. They were the idols - Their community could never know they had something to fear. 

But Gaster knew precautions were already being taken by Gerson to strengthen the Royal Guard. It was already impressive, and it scared the scientist knowing how it would be built up. 

If Asgore tried to build the Guard up too far... civilians would get suspicious. 

Over the course of the year the tension escalated to a point where the humans eventually snapped.

Gaster's fears were confirmed- the humans declared total war on the monsters.

Their militaries were strong. Stronger than every monster physically able to fight, put together.

Gaster and a sparse team of scientists were working on weapons for the war effort, currently. After about a week, he hit gold. (Metaphorically of course, wealth wasn't an issue.)

Blasters with the ability to obliterate anything in their path. Gaster decided to take this weapon to his advantage, joining the war force, fighting alongside Asgore and his wife. 

They were not always successful. Most times they would have to surrender and retreat back to base, where they would count their dead and send their wounded to the medical tents.

Soon enough, Gaster joined General Fiambe's effort. 

He was good friends with the other, actually. It was an honor for Gaster to be fighting with him. 

Disappointing, however, as the monsters were currently losing. It seemed every step of this world was coated in a sheer layer of dust. Fallen monsters.

Fallen children. 

The monsters had one a single battle out of the five large fights already taken place, the next would be a toss-up. 

His section was thrown into battle against the humans, having been caught off-guard.

There were so many of them. Hundreds upon hundreds against their meager 400 soldiers.

General Fiambe called for the monsters to hold their ground, and to brace themselves against the wave of humans.

Gaster was placed in the front lines beside the best soldiers in their effort of the war. It was an honor.

The scientist shifted in his armour, tilting his head down so the feline-like dkull of a helmet cast a shadow over his face, eyes glowing with violet magic as he summoned a pair of blasters above himself. He could feel emotion pulsing through his body. Fear? What, was he afraid of death? Release from this hellish outcome of a sorry excuse of life? He scoffed at himself, putting one foot behind the other in a defensive stance as the humans charged.

The clash was truly violent. Blood spilled in arcs, heads rolled, dust fell. He could feel the blazing of fire magic to his right, magic pulsing and mixing through the atmosphere to melt into one hell of an eerie landscape. It only fueled Gaster's courage. 

As a human approached, he gripped their soul with a stream of blue magic, slamming them to the ground before firing the blasters at them. They looked absolutely terrified before their soul shattered, something Gaster had long since hardened himself against. 

He kicked the lifeless body aside, as the next hunan threw itself forward. Gaster was easily able to cast them aside, sending a row of bones up through their body to impale them. 

In this act he almost didn't catch the axe that was swinging straight at his head, and he scrambled back before he got hit with it, successfully missing the blade by inches. The human swung it back, the double edge of the axe hitting him right along the eye. 

He fell to his knees with a gasp, clutching the sides of his head in his momentary deafness. His vision blurred as he fell to the ground, and he could feel someone pulling him back. Ideally, to replace him. 

Everything went cold.

 

* * *

 

When he awoke, he was in the base camp medicine tent. 

He groaned and lifted his hand to his skull, phalanges ghosting over a crack running up from his now blind eye, up over the back of his skull.

Eeee, that hurt like a bitch. He'd live.

He looked around for a moment with his good eye. There were those fatally wounded, those temporarily wounded, those already crumbling to dust and those that would never recover.

Gaster wondered which category he'd fit into.

He decided to just close his eyes.

The outlook of this war was terribly grim, however what would the cost be if the monster side didn't win? Genocide? Regicide and forced submission? ...Would they be enslaved? Would they be banished? He shuddered at the thought. 

It wasn't impossible, however. But where would they go? Gaster knew of no place where humans did not live. 

After a while more of this dark consideration, he heard voices approaching. He looked up, vision still blurry and lopsided due to his injured eye. He saw General Fiambe walk in with a nurse.

"Ah, Gaster, I do hope you're feeling well," The fire elemental stated as he entered the tent. 

"Yes, sir. Thank you." The General then nodded to the nurse, who scurried out quickly.

"Now, Gaster. You took a strong hit to the head - we're astonished that you're still here."

"Thank you, sir."

"The nurse says you'll be blind in your right eye for the rest of your life," The General stated, his flames flickering.

"Would that mean I'm no longer fit to fight, General?"

"That's what we're not sure about. You're strong - but this accident will hinder your abilities. We'll have to see." 

"I understand," Gaster replied. The General then left. 

Blind for the rest of his life. He traced over the crack, sighing. He could either go back to the lab, or risk fucking everything up for everyone else.

He'd be better use in the lab, he thought.


	2. Premonition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> pre·mo·ni·tion  
> ˌprēməˈniSH(ə)n,ˌpreməˈniSH(ə)n/  
> noun  
> noun: premonition; plural noun: premonitions
> 
> a strong feeling that something is about to happen, especially something unpleasant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my tumblr is jedjubeed.tumblr.com, and my beta readers tumblr is we-can-start-over.tumblr.com (their tumblr is 18+)
> 
> this is me rambling for a good three paras

After lengthy conversation with his General, they both decided Gaster to be better off working in the lab, back with the team of scientists he previously had to work with. They weren't an exciting bunch, but at least hey knew their place and how to get their job done. Nothing was more infuriating to Gaster than monsters who couldn't do their job. Which was why former employees thought him to be cruel.

Well, sorry you got fired for your incompetence. And then there are ones that don't actually know anything remotely scientific, they just wanted to get into Gaster's pants. Thus, the entrance exam was born.

Some say he'd find someone eventually, but he preferred to not deal with social encounters. He'd die with his legacy to take his place.

And that's what he planned to do. Domestic life was not for him.

A downside of his injury: frequent migraines. A downside of being a "War Hero": _No one ever left him the fuck alone, ever._

He rested his head in his hands, rubbing around the now-healed crack in his skull, groaning softly. 

He'd die with his legacy to take his place, he thought.

He'd need a legacy to do that. 

He covered his eyes with his hands, just sitting like that for a good few minutes. He only lifted his head when he heard some of his employees going absolutely batshit crazy outside, his well-trusted assistant bursting in.

"D-Dr. Gaster!! You.. You REALLY need t-to turn on t-the radio!!" 

Gaster gave them a very skeptical look, glancing down to his radio set.

"Why is that, Dr. Steadfast? Did I miss something?"

They fluttered their feathers as they scurried over, turning it on to the correct station.. Asgore's voice came out, grainy and filled with static.

_"...Our enemy forces have been very successful... but fear not, the opposing leader has granted us a safe surrender if we do so now. I have talked with him... and he proposed thst if we do surrender peacefully, he will not harm us. He will peacefully call off all troops... but we will be banished to the underground caves... This is our official surrender. Monster troops, return to base camps and wait for orders. We shall all gather at Mt. Ebott tomorrow at sundown... Your leaders will tell you where to meet... Wingding Gaster, Gerson and I will be leading-"_  

That's where he decided to turn it off. 

He looked down at his desh, tenting his fingers over his mouth. 

Asgore had sent a letter explaining all of this. He wanted to ignore it, he wanted to tear it up and pretend it had never happened.

He wanted to win. He didn't want those sorry excuses for fleshbags advancing any further.

Millions of monsters had died for this cause. Millions of monsters had died an honorable death, for the monsters to lose. To surrender just like that. 

Gaster couldn't believe it.

"Sir?"

He looked up. Ah, yes, he couldn't have a breakdown, his assistant was still here.

"Yes?"

"Um, You.. you're leading. None of us really know what to do."

The employees were still losing their shit outside. 

Gaster knew exactly what to do. They'd pack up all vital equipment, and they'd head for Mt. Ebott.

"Call up a meeting. Every single monster will meet in the front room. I'll explain what to do then." Gaster rubbed his face. "Tell them that if they're not there within ten minutes, they'll be left here to succumb to the most painful death imaginable. Now go."

The assistant nodded quickly, and sprinted out to gather everyone up. 

Gaster looked up as the footsteps faded and the racket calmed outside of his office, and he started digging through his drawers to pull out anything they might need. The trip to Mt. Ebott from the lab wasn't a very long one- just a few hours on foot, however they needed to stop and gather all the remaining soldiers that Gaster was assigned to. They were ordered not to move until he showed up, and he didn't want to leave anyone behind. 

Stopping at all the required camps would lengthen the trip to a day. 

 

* * *

 

 Gaster took count of the number of people he had travelling with him after he hit the last camp. He had almost 800 monsters with him.

However by the time he hit the last camp, which made them backtrack considerably, it was almost sunup. That was very, very bad. They were behind schedule, considerably. 

The scientist wouldn't say he didn't have common empathy - however he just lacked most empathy for monsters. Many died on the way of dehydration, their wounds, or just from their HP being widdled away from this war. Everyone had been losing track of time. No one really knew how long it had been.

No one wanted to know.

Gaster arrived at the mountain just as the sun was setting. Asgore and Gerson were already there, presumably waiting for the human king and his group to arrive. Gaster counted up the members of his incoming party.

There were only 724 monsters left. Gaster sighed and shook his head, before walking over to join the two other leaders.

"Asgore, Gerson, it's good to see you again. I'm glad you're not injured badly." Even though Gerson did have a few new marks, Asgore had a bandage wrapping his torso, and of course Gaster had the crack over his eye. They were all a mess.

"Wa ha ha! The humans couldn't take this trio down even if they tried - which they have!" Gerson exclaimed, shifting his helmet up.

"Ah, yes. None of us have been left uninjured, though I'm glad to see you made it out of your injry, Dr. Gaster."

"Ah, thank you sir. I'm very thankful to be alive right now, being on the business end of a war axe isn't the ideal way to spend my mornings." That really got a laugh out of all of them. It was kind of nice to be talking again, without all this.. stress. It was their one moment where they could be friends instead of leaders, because they knew in the backs of their minds they would have to really keep it together once they... well, once they were banished.

They all knew that they were terrified. They all knew they couldn't show it, not even to each other.

Just after sunset, the leader of the humans rode in with a team of wizards. 

"Well! I have agreed to peacefully call off if you surrendered. You've surrendered, yes, but we've made the decision to banish you.

"We shall escort you to the top of the mountain and seal you in with a barrier. What you choose to do next is your choice, you are now an independent people." Gaster could see the mix of emotions in Asgore's face as he looked at his wife. "Well? Get going now."

It was almost an unspoken agreement that Asgore, Toriel, Gerson and Gaster would go first, followed by the lab team, the Generals of the war and their families, and then everyone else. It was always like that, ever since Asgore assumed leadership and Gerson was sworn in as Captain of the guard at eighteen, Gaster already having been working under Asgore's father.

It was always like that, ever since things changed for the better.

The monsters silently entered the cavern, those who had brought lamps and torches lighting them as solemnly as they could. Gaster, Gerson, Toriel and Asgore watched morosely as the izards sealed them in. Soon they could see nothing besides an endless expanse of pulsing magic, and the glow of the lanterns behind them.

Asgore patted Gaster's shoulder, before the scientist turned to adress the crowd. 

"As the leader of the humans said - we are now an independent people, leaving Asgore and Toriel in charge as King and Queen, Gerson as the Captain of the Royal Guard, and I myself as the Royal Scientist. Things will continue at a slow pace, but continue nonetheless. I suggest we all stay calm. Those of you needing medical attention, please find one of the head scientists, myself, or Queen Toriel. Please keep children nearby. No one strays out of this cavern until a member of the Royal Guard or someone else in high authority gives the okay. Adress us with any questions at the moment. We will be staying the night here." 

There was the soft murmur of voices after the echo of Gaster's voice faded out, and people shuffled around to find the people they were looking for. Toriel soon got pulled aside to heal someone. 

"I always was impressed with your ability to give speeches like that on the fly," Asgore said.

"Yes, well, when you've been working at this job as long as I have, you learn a few things," Gaster replied with a chuckle. "But now comes the next issue. Gerson should take General Fiambe to explore the next cavern to make sure it's safe. This is a small cavern - there isn't much room for everyone. It's already quite cramped and we hardly have 1200 monsters left." 

"I'll let him know. He seems to be having an important conversation with General Fiambe at the moment." They both looked over. They did seem to be having an important conversation. 

"Ah, yes. Please remember to do so, however. I'll be with by lab team if you need me." Gaster nodded and folded his arms behind his back, walking over to join his team in helping heal some monsters who needed medical assistance.

They would make slow progress, but progress nonetheless.


End file.
